To be honest, I’ve had very little exposure to the Lego Universe. I do know that, initially, they made video games featuring Lego versions of iconic Pop Culture characters. Lego Star Wars and Lego Indy Jones begat Lego Batman. I’m pretty sure I once saw a Nintendo DS game called “Lego Tyler Perry’s Medea Scared Stupid” but I could be wrong about that.
Anyways…. These cute incarnations of famous characters have now spawned some DVDs that are actually pretty good. I requested a copy of the latest release of the series entitled “Lego Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Out”. The 22 minute short originally aired on Cartoon Network back in September but it is now available where ever DVDs are sold.
I’ve been covering as much Kiddie Entertainment as I can so that I can share with my daughter and get her reaction. She is under 2 years old so just looking at the television for a portion of the running time is a thumbs up from her. She made it about 15 minutes so I consider that a positive. Also, this was her first exposure of the Star Wars Universe and this really is a great introduction for someone her age. You can feel safe in knowing that Anakin will not be killing any children in a Lego Star Wars movie.
This is a follow up to the successful “Lego Star Wars: The Padawan Menace” and liberally pulls from all of the Star Wars films. This does not happen in the original movie time line, instead this follow its own path. Luke Skywalker is constantly chased down by fanatical girls as he tries to find and destroy an Imperial base. Leia and Han journey to Naboo and enlist the help of the Big Gungans (no Jar Jar allowed here) while Darth Vader deals poorly with some jealous sibling rivalry as he tries to win the Emperor’s affections from Darth Maul.
There is a solid sense of humor running through the episode and there are plenty of insider references to keep the older fans at least giggling. Darth Maul is actually pretty hilarious as he sings to all around how awesome his multi-directional light saber is and Darth Vader is a portrayed as a bubbling idiot who can do very little right.
You can find the video priced for between $14.99 and $9.99 which may be a bit steep for a 22 minute short but the package does come with a Lego Darth Vader. And from what I understand, that makes it a pretty good bargain.